Brussels Briefing
The European Union launched the Eastern Partnership in 2009 to forge closer ties with its neighbors in Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus. The Eastern Partnership, part of the European Neighborhood Policy, aimed at supporting political, institutional, and economic reforms in these countries. Over the past years, however, the Eastern Partnership’s effectiveness has increasingly been questioned – not least because such cooperation fell short of offering EU membership perspectives. The recent conflict with Russia over Ukraine’s future revealed that the EU, in pursuing this policy, slid involuntarily into competing with Russia over geopolitical influence in the region. Does it mark the end of the Eastern Partnership? Or is a fresh start that takes account of new realities possible? This Brussels Briefing will assess the impact of Russia’s aggression on the EU’s relations with its Eastern neighbors. With the new European Commission and High Representative in place, this in an opportune time to address the current debates in Brussels on reforming the Eastern Partnership and to note the lessons that should be incorporated into the review process.
Speakers:
Dirk Schübel
Head of Division, Eastern Partnership bilateral, European External Action Service (EEAS), Brussels
Dr. Stefan Meister
Head of Program, Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia, Robert Bosch Center for Central and Eastern Europe, Russia, and Central Asia, DGAP, Berlin
The event is organized by the Alfred von Oppenheim-Center for European Policy Studies and will be moderated by its head of program, Almut Möller.
